What Makes a Good ESL Teacher?

The "New York Times" is accepting nominations for the best English teacher to speakers of other languages in New York City until February 11, 2011. Nominators are asked what makes the teacher the best in the city. English as a second language teachers regularly go above and beyond merely teaching an English lesson in class to serve as community, career, educational and life guides for their immigrant, refugee and asylee students.

This award started me thinking about what actually makes a good English as a second language teacher. Besides having the obvious qualifications of speaking English well and being good instructors and communicators, what else does a teacher do that makes her a good teacher to the special population of English language learners?

English teachers must first and foremost have a passion for sharing their knowledge of the English language with newcomers to the United States or English language learners in other parts of the world. If you teach just to have something to do or for any other reason than you really like to teach English, it shows. It comes out in your tone of voice, how you conduct your class and how approachable you are to your students.

A strong appreciation of and a curiosity about other cultures and languages is also required. English language students have so much to teach their teachers about their ways of life, their languages and history. Incorporating the cultures and backgrounds of your students into your class and lessons enriches your classroom and your own knowledge of the world. If you teach English in the U.S. or another English-speaking country, your class may have representatives of several cultures in it. You must be able to give value to each one in your lessons.

English teachers must also have the ability to empathize with the situations in which their students live. This is especially important for teachers of adults. Jobs, school, navigating everyday life and living in a new community are difficult strains on anyone. Try doing it in a new country where nothing makes sense and in a language you do not understand very well or at all. Refugees are particularly vulnerable to the strains of living in a new country as they are escaping war and persecution, which only adds difficulty to the process of settling in.

An English teacher must also be able to make lessons relevant and engaging for students. If you are teaching academic English to soon-to-be university students, your lessons have to focus on skills and language that university students will use on a regular basis. Learning to take notes in a lecture in English is not a priority, however, for an English student who wants to be able to communicate better with her child's teacher. A good English teacher stays in touch with the needs and learning goals of her students. She touches base with them regularly to see how they feel about lessons and if there is more or different material they would rather be learning.

Enthusiasm about life in general and a good sense of humor are also necessary in the ESL classroom. Teachers will make mistakes about how to structure lessons, and students will make mistakes in how they use English. The teacher must be able to laugh at their own mistakes and encourage both themselves and their students to learn from their mistakes with a light heart.

A good ESL teacher is more than an instructor. She is an important part of her students' lives as they try to figure out how to live in their new countries or to embark on a new chapter of their lives where they will speak regularly speak English in their own or other countries.